Workpiece handling and production apparatus

ABSTRACT

Improved workpiece handling and production apparatus provided with a superstructure and a rack and guide assembly operatively associated therewith for effecting compound movement in and out of a workpiece treating station and orientation of one or more elongated workpieces relative thereto in order to effect selective treatment of a workpiece such as, for example, metal cladding of an I-shaped apertured steel rail member.

[4 1 Mar. 28, 1972 United States Patent Shkredka .....2l4/l P....2l4/672 Frederick et m e L...- rs ep mm 6 HD 23 55 99 ll. 15

[54] WORKPIECE HANDLING AND PRODUCTION APPARATUS [72] inventor:

Jurek Shkredka, Oakland, Calif.

Primary Examiner-Geiald M. Forlenza Assistant Examiner-F rank E. Werner[73] Assignee: Kaiser Aluminum 8: Chemical Corporalion, Oakland, Calif.

June 29, 1970 Attorney-James E. Toomey, Paul E. Calrow, Harold L.Jenkins and John S. Rhoades [22] Filed:

[21] Appl. N6;

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such as, for example, metal cladding of an I-shaped apertured steel railmember.

UNITED STATES PATENTS .214/672 .214/672 X 23 Claims, 17 Drawing Figures505,749 9/1893 Cardarelli............................. 3,412,876 11/1968Calabrese.........................

sum 1 [1F 6 PATENTEDMAR28 1972 T H IJHIHH INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY PATENTEU MR 2 8 1972 SHEET 2 OF 6 IIIEI E- L/UPE'K SHKRED/(AINVENTOR. BY w BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to aworkpiece handling and production apparatus. More particularly, itrelates to an improved workpiece handling and production apparatus forselectively advancing and orienting an elongated workpiece relative to aworkpiece treating station prior to and during feeding of the workpieceinto and removal of the same from the workpiece treating station.

Various apparatus have been designed in the past for handling elongatedworkpieces such as oil drilling rigs that handle pipe sections. Examplesof such apparatus are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,615,585 to Menhall,granted on Oct. 28, 1952, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,368,699 to Scaggs, grantedon Feb. 13, 1968. Some of the principal deficiencies of such priorworkpiece handling apparatus is that they were not concerned withpositively, yet floatably, supporting a specially pretreated elongatedworkpiece while passing it through a workpiece treating station, andthen withdrawing it from the work station all in a continuous andprogressive manner with minimal overhead handling and in areas wherespace is at a premium. They were also not concerned with handling of preor post metal clad articles where considerable care had to be exercisedin the handling of the workpieces particularly after cladding lest thecladding material be adversely disturbed.

The improved workpiece production apparatus of the instant invention isprovided with an improved superstructure and a unique rack and guideassembly operatively associated with the superstructure. This assemblyis adapted to simultaneously pivotally support and transfer a pluralityof elongated workpieces in an improved continuous and progressive mannerfrom a workpiece loading position to a workpiece feeding position andthen from an ejecting position to a storage position. In one operatingposition of the instant device workpieces are fed into and ejected outof a workpiece treating station where they are selectively treated suchas, for example, clad with a special metal. In another position theworkpieces are specially oriented for handling by another apparatus.Because the apparatus of the instant invention can precisely handle andorient a plurality of workpieces simultaneously relative to a workpiecetreating station, the apparatus can advantageously be used to handle asubstantial number of workpieces in a minimum amount of time.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The primary purpose of the instant invention isto provide an apparatus for simultaneously handling and transporting aplurality of workpieces from one workpiece processing station to anotherstation and then back to the first station in order to selectively treata plurality of work pieces simultaneously. The apparatus of theinvention is particularly suitable for handling pre and post clad metalworkpieces in an expeditious yet delicate manner whereby disturbance andinjury to the cladding material are advantageously avoided.

The apparatus is generally comprised of a rack and guide assembly alongwith a carriage means. The carriage means engages a plurality ofworkpieces directly. A superstructure supports the rack and guideassembly.

The rack of the assembly can be advantageously provided with a workpiecepositioning device as well as a workpiece holddown mechanism andworkpiece swivel mounts are connected to the carriage for swivellyengaging the workpieces.

Special track means on the superstructure orients the rack and guideassembly and its carriage relative to a workpiece treating station sothat when the carriage is released from a locked position on the rackand guide assembly at a certain time the carriage can lower and raise aplurality of rails into and out of a continuous casting station.

The apparatus is particularly useful with the Cladding Mold Systemdisclosed in copending application, Ser. No. 881,169, filed Dec. 1,1969.

2 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an overall sideelevational view with parts broken away of a preferred embodiment of therail workpiece handling apparatus of the instant invention;

FIG. 2 is a graphical illustration of the general paths of travel takenby a pre-clad and post-clad workpiece during operation of the apparatusof the instant invention;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary and broken perspective view of thestructure of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG.3 and with the cladding added to the rails;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged side elevational view taken within line 5-5 ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged plan view taken along line 6-6 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a view taken along line 7-7 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a view with parts added taken along line 8-8 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged end elevational view taken within the bounds ofline 99 of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged fragmentary side elevational view with partsadded taken within line 10-10 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 11 is an enlarged side elevational view taken within line 11-11ofFIG. 7;

FIG. 12 is an enlarged and fragmented top plan view of the structure ofFIG. 6, with parts added and other parts broken away and shows variousdetails of the rack and guide assembly;

FIG. 13 is an enlarged sectional view along line 13-13 of FIG. 12 withparts broken away;

FIG. 14 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 14- 14 of FIG. 13and with parts broken away;

FIG. 15 is an enlarged sectional view taken along line 15- 15 of FIG.12; 5

FIG. 16 is an enlarged fragmented plan view taken within circumscribingline 16-16 of FIG. 12 with portions broken away; and

FIG. 17 is an enlarged view taken generally along line 17- 17 of FIG. 1,and illustrates certain features of the rack and guide assembly of theapparatus.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION With further reference to the drawings andparticularly FIGS. 1, 5, l2 and 17, a preferred embodiment of theinstant invention contemplates a workpiece handling and productionapparatus 10 for simultaneously picking-up and moving a plurality ofelongated rail workpieces W into and out of a metal cladding zone S.

More specifically and as schematically indicated in FIG. 2, theapparatus 10 transfers six elongated un-clad workpieces W from ahorizontal position A to an upstanding position B disposed above andgenerally aligned with the workpiece pass line of station S. Whenindividual workpieces are first located in position B, the apparatusdirects the workpieces into cladding station S. After cladding, theworkpieces are raised up and then returned to their original position Awhere they can be picked up by another device.

Apparatus 10 generally comprises a rack and guide assembly 12 (bestshown in FIGS. 6-7 and 12) mounted in a superstructure 14. A carriage 16is selectively connected to the guides 18 of the assembly 12 foradvancement between the longitudinal ends thereof upon disconnection ofthe carriage from the rack 17 of the assembly 12.

As indicated in FIGS. 3, 12 and 15-16, a swivel lock device 24 firmlyyet freely locks each workpiece W to carriage 16. As indicated in FIGS.8-10, one or more workpiece positioning and guide devices 25 can beprovided on the rack 17 for use in moving a workpiece W betweenpositions A and B and for guiding the workpiece W into and out of workstations S when the rack and guide assembly is in position B. Ifdesired, a holddown device 26 can be used in combination with device 25for preventing excessive swiveling of a workpiece W during operation ofthe apparatus.

A cable hoist mechanism 28 best shown in FIGS. 1, 5, 12 and 17 ismounted on the superstructure and connected to both carriage 16 and rack17. Hoist mechanism 28 is used for hoisting the carriage together withthe rack and guide assembly from positions A to B and vice versa, andfor selectively raising and lowering the carriage relative to the rackand guide assembly and relative to station S when the rack and guideassembly is in position B. The cable-connected end of rack 17 isadvantageously provided with a cam-operated latch mechanism 29 (seeFIGS. 11-12 and 17) for engaging a cam 29' at the upper end of thesuperstructure so as to effect disconnection of the carriage from therack when the rack and guide assembly is in position B. Upondisconnection of carriage 16 from rack 17, carriage 16 can beselectively advanced along guide 18 of assembly 12 upon furtheroperation of the hoist mechanism when rack and guide assembly 12 are inposition B.

Inner and outer pairs of tracks 30 and 32 of generally curvilinear butsomewhat different shape as best depicted in FIGS. 1, 3, and 5, areadvantageously connected to the superstructure for supporting andengaging the rack and guide assembly 12 in order to generally orient therack and guide assembly between A and B positions. The hook and pusherdevice 32 of FIG. engages the cable-free or lower end of rack 17 whenrack 17 is in position B and acts to draw the cable-free end of the rackinto alignment with the upper and inner V-shaped ends 31 of the innerpair of tracks 30. This brings about a precise orientation of the rackand guide assembly 12 in position B prior to the selective lowering andraising of carriage 17 together with a workpiece W relative to stationS.

Although not shown in the drawings, it is to be understood that workstation S can be provided with one or more openings having pass lines Lfor receiving workpieces W upon their being fed to and removed fromstation S which contains a suitable cladding guide and mold arrangementsuch as that noted in the aforementioned patent application.

The workpieces W can be attached to and disconnected from swivel lockdevices 24 when assembly 12 is in horizontal position A.

The rails W as handled by the instant equipment are usually on the orderof 40 or more feet in length and because of manufacturing procedures canvary somewhat in geometrical shape from rail to rail. Regardless of suchvariations, a plurality of such workpieces can be simultaneously handledby the apparatus of the invention.

The particular manner in which the cladding of a rail is effected atstation S does not constitute part of the instant invention andreference is made to the aforementioned application for further detailsof a suitable cladding mold system that can be employed at station S foreffecting cladding of the workpiece. On the other hand, the instantapparatus plays a significant part in maintaining proper alignment ofmany rails with the cladding molds as the many rails are simultaneouslypassed through the cladding zone. 1

In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, rack 17 can be comprisedof a plurality of L-shaped chordal members 34 and a series ofreinforcing strut members 36 all as illustrated in FIGS. 1, 6-7 and -14.An idler wheel assembly 40 is connected to the cable-connected end ofthe rack and guide assembly in a direction generally transverse of thelongitudinal axis 41 thereof. The assembly includes a shaft 42intermediate and spaced portions of which are joumalled in brackets 43and wheels 44 are connected to the ends of shaft 42. If desired and asnoted in FIG. 11, the cable-connected end of rack 17 may include achannel-shaped reinforcing element 45. As with the first idler wheelassembly 40, a second idler wheel assembly 48 includes a shaft 50joumalled in brackets 46 at the cable-free end of rack 17 in the mannerbest shown in FIGS. 8 and 12 and wheels 52 are connected to the oppositeends of shaft 50. Shafts 42 and 50 have different lengths whereby thewheels 44 and 52 of the various assemblies are offset relative to eachother and can engage different pairs of tracks 32 and 30 as the rack andguide assembly 12 moves from a horizontal position to an upstandingposition and vice versa during operation of the apparatus as will becomemore fully apparent hereinafter.

Guide 18 of assembly 12 preferably includes a series of Iongitudinallyspaced and aligned L-shaped elements 54 disposed on opposed sides ofrack 17 and at the top or outwardly facing side thereof. As indicated inFIGS. 7-13, at least one pair of relatively spaced T-shaped stubelements 56 extend between and are connected to intermediate portions ofan upper side edge chordal member 34 of rack 22 and the vertical legsection of an L-shaped guide element 54 of a series of guide elementswhereby a given guide element 54 is held in spaced and parallel relationto its associated and upper side edge chordal member 34 of rack 17.Moreover, as best shown in FIG. 8, the upper horizontal and inwardlydirected leg sections 58 of both series of guide elements 54 on opposedsides of rack 17 lie in a substantially common plane which is disposedabove and in parallel spaced relation to another plane that passes inmedian fashion through the upper and opposed side edge chordal members34 of rack 17. The opposed leg sections of guide elements 54 support andslidably engage workpiece carriage 16 during the selective advancementthereof in either direction between the opposite longitudinal ends ofrack and guide assembly 12 as will now be described.

Carriage 16 is preferably of a one-piece steel plate construction with awidth that is somewhat less than the distance between opposed inwardlydirected side edges of leg sections 58 of the various opposed guideelements 54. A wheel and guide device 60 attached to each side edge ofcarriage 16 allows the carriage to be freely and slidably connected toopposed guide elements 54 on guide 18 of assembly 12.

As indicated in FIGS. 3 and 9-14, device 60 is generally comprised ofopposed strap elements 66 and two pairs of wheels 68 operativelyassociated therewith. Adjacent inner side edges of opposed strapelements 66 of a given guide device 60 are partially cut to defineopposed and generally longitudinally aligned grooves 70 of approximatelyU-shaped configuration; An opposed side edge of carriage 16 isselectively cut away so as to define a plurality of four inwardlyextending, relatively spaced and longitudinally aligned grooves 72. Ifdesired, the endmost groove of the various grooves 72 at a righthandcomer of carriage 16 as viewed in FIG. 12 can be of less extent than theother grooves. Each groove 72 is a U- shape similar to groove 70 for astrap element 66 of a guide device 60.

As best illustrated in FIGS. 11 and 14, each opposed major face of thecarriage at one of the opposite side edges thereof is interposed betweenand is in clamping engagement with the inner and underneath side edgeportions of one of the opposed strap elements 66 of a given guide device60. During overlapment of opposed strap elements 66 with opposed majorfaces of carriage 16 at a side edge thereof, the grooves 70 of opposedstrap elements 66 are aligned relative to each other in such fashionthat a groove 70 of one strap element 66 is axially aligned with agroove 70 of the opposed strap element so that opposed grooves ofopposed straps 66 are aligned in paired relationship. At the same time,an axially aligned pair of grooves 70 of opposed straps 66 of a givendevice 60 are coaxially aligned with their respective groove 72 of thecarriage t0 define a common opening 74 that fully extends between thetop and bottom of opposed straps 66 of a device 60 disposed at a sideedge of the carriage in the manner shown in FIG. 14. A U-shaped groove70 or 72 as provided on a strap element 66 or a side edge of carriage 14has a radius slightly greater than the radius of a wheel 68 of a givenguide device 60 whereby the wheel can be freely and rotatably receivedwithin a common opening 74 in the manner depicted in FIGS. 9 and 12-14.

Bar elements 76 are disposed at either longitudinal and of a given guidedevice 60 and are adapted to be securely attached to opposed strapelements 66 thereof by means of cap screw assemblies 78 passed throughaligned openings in opposed strap and bar elements 66 and 76 and theassociated side edge of the carriage at either longitudinal end of adevice 60. The length of a bar 76 is such that either longitudinal endof a given bar element 76 partially closes off the adjacent end of acommon opening 74 as best shown in FIGS. 12-14. Because of such partialclosure of a common opening 74, opposed bar elements 76 of a givendevice 60 rotatably support a wheel 68 in an associated common opening74 when a cap screw assembly 80 is passed through opposed bar elements76 of a device 60 and the hub of a wheel 68. If desired, a flangedsleeve bearing 84 can be interposed between a bar element 76 and theassociated hub portion of a respective wheel as shown in FIG. 14.

By reason of a side edge of carriage 16 being overlapped and interposedbetween opposed strap elements 66 of a device 60, oppositely facinginner major surface portions of opposed straps 66 define a gap 88 thatextends fully between the longitudinal ends of the opposed strapelements at either side edge of the carriage 16. As indicated in FIG.14, the horizontal leg section 58 of a guide element 54 has a thicknesssomewhat less than the thickness of carriage plate 16 whereby thehorizontal leg section of a guide element 54 can be freely in serted inan appropriate manner into gap 88 adjacent a given side edge of thecarriage when opposed strap elements 66, etc., of a guide device 60 areattached to the given side edge of the carriage as aforedescribed.

The outer peripheral surface portions 90 of a wheel 68, when rotatablymounted within a common opening 74 on opposite sides of the carriage,define the bottom depth limits of the associated gap 88. As indicated inFIGS. 12 and 14, the transverse distance between the opposed outerperipheral surface portions 90 of wheels 68 of carriage 14 is somewhatless than the transverse distance between opposed inner edges 92 of thehorizontal leg sections 58 of opposed guide elements 54. Thus, bothseries of wheels 68 on opposed sides of the carriage and the opposedstrap elements 66 on opposed sides thereof rollingly engage leg sections58 of guide elements 54 and enable the carriage to be freely andselectively advanced in a continuous fashion without binding in eitherdirection between the ends of the guide 18. As indicated in FIGS. 6 and12, the longitudinal distance between an adjacent pair of wheels 68 ofthe two pairs thereof of a guide device 60 on either side edge ofcarriage 14 is no less than the distance between adjoining ends ofadjacent guide elements 54 of the series of guide elements on eitherside of the guide 23 of the rack and guide assembly thereby assuringsmooth transfer of an opposed side edge of the carriage betweenadjoining guide elements 54 during advancement of the carriage betweenopposite ends of the rack and guide assembly. As best indicated in FIGS.9-11 and 13-14, posts 56 which support guide elements 54 have asufficient height to assure adequate clearance between wheel and guidedevices 60 and the upper side edge of chordal members 34 of rack 17.Thus, advancement of the carriage between the ends of the rack and guideassembly is not obstructed or otherwise inhibited during operation ofthe apparatus. If desired, the longitudinal end of a strap 66 of a guidedevice may be bent upwardly and outwardly in the manner illustrated at93 in FIGS. 11 and 13 so as to facilitate smooth transfer of thecarriage between adjoining guide elements 54 on opposed side edgesthereof.

In another advantageous embodiment of the invention and as indicated inFIGS. 3, 6, 12 and 15-17, a plurality of workpiece swivel and pivotalmounting devices 24, e.g., six, are preferably connected to thecable-free longitudinal end of the carriage. For the sake of brevity,only three swivel devices 24 are diagrammatically shown in FIG. 3. Aworkpiece mounting device 24 includes a pair of open-ended and generallyaxially aligned sleeves 94. An axle shaft 96 extends between the outeropposed ends of the adjoining sleeves and is concentrically disposed inthe common interior between the outer opposed ends thereof as bestillustrated in FIG. 16. The outer end of either sleeve 94 includes aninwardly directed radial annular flange 98 integrally connected to theinterior cylindrical surface of each sleeve 94 and disposed axiallyinward of the outer end thereof. A bearing assembly having inner andouter races with mating bearing surfaces 102 of segmented sphericalshape are forceably fitted in the interior opening of either adjoiningsleeve 94 at the outer end thereof until a given bearing assembly 100abuts its respective flange 98 in the associated sleeve therebyprecisely positioning the bearing assembly therein.

During forceable fitting of the bearing assemblies to opposed outer endsof adjoining sleeves 94, a given outer reduced end 104 of shaft 96 isinserted in an appropriate manner in and through the central opening ofthe inner race of its associated bearing assembly 100 whereby adjoiningsleeves 94 at the outer opposed ends thereof are swivelly connectedabout the longitudinal axis 106 of shaft 96 at the reduced orlongitudinal ends thereof. Nut assemblies 108 attached to thelongitudinal ends of shaft 96 securely hold adjoining sleeves 94, shaft96 and bearings 100 all together in the assembled manner. The axialdistance between the shoulders 1 10 of shaft 96 is greater than doublethe axial distance between the outwardly facing annular end face offlange 98 of an adjoining sleeve 94 and the inner non-flanged endthereof whereby adjacent inner non-flanged ends of adjoining sleeves areseparated from each other by a slight gap 112 when the adjoining sleevesare assembled to shaft 96 as aforedescribed. The gap 112 for a reasonthat will become more apparent hereinafter advantageously restrictsswiveling of the longitudinal axis of a sleeve 94 in an angulardirection about the lon gitudinal axis 106 of shaft 96 to apredetermined amount.

A pair of lugs 114 are disposed above the longitudinal axis of theleft-hand sleeve and affixed to left-hand sleeve longitudinally thereofin chordal fashion while the right-hand sleeve fits in the recess of afork element 116. The fork portions of fork element 116 are offset belowthe longitudinal axis of right-hand sleeve 94 and affixed to thissleeve. Since lugs 114 and fork 116 are offset on opposite sides of thelongitudinal axis of a device 24, the longitudinal axis of a workpiece Wis substantially aligned with the median longitudinal plane of carriage16 in the manner shown in FIG. 15 during operation of the apparatus fora reason that will become more apparent hereinafter.

The cable-free end of carriage 16 is provided with a plurality ofsimilar tongues 117, e.g., seven, each of which is separated from anadjacent tongue by a groove 118. Lugs 114 of left-hand sleeve 94 of agiven device 24 are affixed to adjacent tongue portions 117 by cap screwassemblies 120 fitted in aligned openings in lugs 114 and the tongueportions 117.

The stem 122 of fork 116 of the right-hand sleeve 94 is releasably andpivotally connected to a rail workpiece W and a pin 124 having afrusto-conically shaped head portion 126 is suitably affixed to theouter end of fork 116. The frusto-conically shaped head of a pin 124 hasa diameter at any point thereon which is less than the diameter of anaperture 0 of a rail W. This means that one end of a rail W can bepivotally connected to a device 24 upon insertion of the head portion126 of the pin of the device in and through an aperture of the rail Wlocated adjacent to the rail end.

An assembly 128 having a lug 130 at its upper end is rotatably connectedbetween the junction of fork and stem portions of the fork 116 of agiven device 24 in such fashion that the lug end can be rotated tooverlappingly engage the adjoining and outwardly facing web of rail Wand clampingly hold the adjacent web end of the rail against theunderlying stem portion 122 of device 24.

Ifdesired, a washer 132 can be inserted between the lug 130 of a device24 and the stem portion 122 thereof. A keeper 134 is mounted on the stemportion of a device 24 and is generally comprised of a bar 136 forbiasingly engaging the lug 130. Biased engagement of the keeper bar withlug 130 results in the lug remaining in a rail holding position andprevents accidental disconnection of the rail from the device duringhoisting of the rack and guide assembly together with a workpiece frompositions A to B in FIG. 2. Various outer corner edges of lugs 114 andof fork 116 of a device 24 may be beveled as indicated at 137 in FIGS.15-16.

Since left-hand sleeve 94 is affixed to the cable-free end of carriage14, the right-hand sleeve 94 is free to swivel about the right end ofshaft 96 as viewed in FIG. 16 while the left end of shaft 96 is free 'toswivel about the longitudinal axis of lefthand sleeve 94. In oneoperative embodiment of the instant invention a gap 112 of aboutone-eighth of an inch between adjacent inner ends of adjoining sleeves94 of a device 24 has been found sufficient to limit angular swivelingof the righthand sleeve about the axis of shaft 96 to an angle on theorder of 7 as indicated at 138 in FIG. 16. Moreover, a bis-inch gapbetween adjoining sleeves 94 of a device 24 will also limit angularswiveling of shaft 96 about left-hand sleeve 94 to an angle of about 7as indicated at 139 in FIG. 16. Thus, the A;- inch gap between adjoiningsleeves of a device 24 effectively limits excessive swiveling of aworkpiece rail W about the device during the operation thereof.

The apparatus of the instant invention advantageously provides aworkpiece positioning and guide mechanism 25 for the rack of rack andguide assembly 12 as illustrated in FIGS. 8-10. The mechanism ispreferably comprised of an I-shaped beam 142 and a multi-groovedtemplate 144. The I-shaped beam extends transversely of and is connectedto upper and opposed rack members 34. An intermediate section of theupper flange of beam 142 is cut away to facilitate attachment of themulti-grooved template 144 to the upper edge of the beam web and betweenbeam flange portions 146. The upper edge of template 144 is providedwith divergent upward and outward portions 151 interconnected by edgeportion 150 and defining a trapezoidally shaped groove 148. As indicatedin FIGS. 8-9, the transverse dimension of a rail workpiece W is of lessextent than the major dimension of a groove 148. Since the majordimension of a groove 148 is of greater extent than a transversedimension of a workpiece W, the edge portions 150, 151 of template 144defining a groove 148 will cooperate to nestingly engage certain flangeportions of a rail along the length thereof not only for the purpose ofinitially centering the rail when the rail is loaded onto the rack andguide assembly at position A but also for directly supporting the railwhen it is moved from positions A to B and vice versa during operationof the apparatus. On the other hand, upper edge portions 150 and 151 oftemplate 144 defining a given rail receiving groove 148 advantageouslyserve to slidably engage and guide various flange portions of a railalong its length upon raising and lowering of the rail into and out ofwork station S relative to its associated template groove 148 when rackand guide assembly 12 is in B position during operation of apparatus 10.

If desired, a workpiece holddown 26 may be used in combination with aworkpiece positioning and support mechanism 25. Holddown 26 is generallycomprised of opposed upstanding mounting plates 154 individuallyconnected to intermediate portions of upper and opposed side edgechordal members 34 of rack 17 in the manner illustrated in FIGS. 8-10.Opposed mounting plates 154 of a holddown 26 may be disposed in offsetrelation to an adjacent workpiece positioning mechanism 25 as bestindicated in FIG. 10.

An L-shaped gusset 156 can be provided, if desired, for reinforcing theconnection between a mounting plate 154 and a rack member 34. Anupwardly facing U-shaped bracket 158 may be affixed to the inwardlyfacing side of plate 154 and a hollow workpiece holding bar 160extending between opposed plates can be loosely inserted in the recessesof opposed brackets 158. A wing-nut cap screw assembly 162 connected toeither bracket 158 releasably locks the opposed ends of bar 160 to thebrackets 158, whereby one end of the bar can be selectively pivotedrelative to the other end thereof during loading and/or unloading ofworkpieces from rack and guide assembly 12 when the rack and guideassembly is in position A.

As best indicated in FIGS. 8-10, opposed plates 154 are of such a heightrelative to the overall thickness of a rail W that the bar in beingdisposed between the upper ends of opposed plates 154 provides adequateclearance not only for swiveling a rail between the bar and the templateof support mechanism 25 but also for preventing excessive swiveling ofthe rail when the rack and guide assembly is in upstanding position Bduring feeding of the workpiece into and out of station S. Although onlyone workpiece positioning guide and support mechanism 25 and only oneworkpiece holddown 26 has been shown in FIGS. 8-10, it is to beunderstood that any suitable number of support mechanisms 25 andholddown assemblies 26 and various combinations thereof can be used withthe apparatus of the instant invention.

In another advantageous embodiment of the instant invention, theskeletal superstructure 14 is comprised of a lower box-like section 164and an upper pyramidal-like section 166. Sections 164 and 166 are madeup of a plurality of interconnected girders 168. If desired, certaingirders 168 can be reinforced by adjustable rod-like struts all asdiagrammatically indicated at 170 in FIG. 1. The superstructure has aheight above the floor F sufficient to elevate the rack and guideassembly from the lower horizontal position A to the desired upstandinghigher position B and vice versa. When rack and guide assembly is inposition A, it is disposed adjacent to and substantially at right anglesto a pass line L of work station S. When rack and guide assembly is inposition B, it is disposed above and in general alignment with the passline L. In order to effect elevation of the rack and guide assemblybetween positions A and B, the superstructure is advantageously providedwith the above-noted cable hoist mechanism 28 now to be discussed indetail.

Mechanism 28 is generally comprised of a power driven winch 172 mountedon a platform 174 supported by certain cross girders 168 in the lowersection 164 of superstructure l4. Winch 172 drives a cable and pulleysystem 176 made up of a pair of chain link cables 180 and a common drivepulley 182. The drive pulley is suitably connected to the output shaftof gear assembly 178. It is to be understood that one end of each cable180 of the pair of cables is wrapped about common pulley 182 in acounterclockwise direction and in laterally spaced relation to the othercable of the pair thereof in an appropriate manner as viewed in FIG. 1.A pair of upper idler pulleys 184 are connected to a shaft 186 rotatablymounted in conventional fashion at the top or apex end of upper section166 of structure 14 in the manner shown in FIGS. 1 and 17. Theintermediate portions of a pair of cables 180 are partially wrappedabout the upper peripheral portion of their respective pulleys 184.

The outer ends of the cables are advantageously connected in a uniquemanner to rack and guide assembly 12. To this end the outer endmostlinks of a given cable 180 is provided with a forked portion 188 forefiecting pivotal connection to the cable-connected end of a bar 190.The bars 190 operatively associated with both cables 180 are in turnafi'rxed in parallel spaced relation to each other and at opposite endsof plate 192. Another pair of bars 194 are affixed to the opposite endsof plate 192 on the one side thereof and disposed outwardly of the firstpair of bars in parallel spaced relation to each other. The carriagefacing ends of the second pair of bars 194 extend beyond plate 192 asindicated in FIGS. 6, 12 and 17. A shaft 196 extending in a directiontransversely of the rack and guide assembly 12 is pivotally connected atintermediate portions thereof to the carriage facing ends of the secondpair of bars 194 while also being connected at its outer ends to a pairof slotted plates 198. These plates advantageously form part of latchmechanism 29 that effects selected connection of the shaft to rack 17 ofthe rack and guide assembly for reasons that will become more apparenthereinafter.

By reason of the outer ends of the pair of cables 180 being pivotallyinterconnected to shaft 196 by the first and second pairs of bars 190and 194, etc., the outer ends of the cables are advantageouslystabilized against excessive flexing and disconnection from upper idlerpulley 184. Because of the stable connection of the cables to the rackand guide assembly as aforedescribed, the rack and guide assembly can behoisted between positions A and B and vice versa without damaging theworkpieces suspended from the rack and guide assembly upon actuation ofpower winch 172.

Carriage 16 of the rack and guide assembly is uniquely connected toshaft 196 by means of U-shaped straps 200. During connection of the endsof a given U-shaped strap 200 to carriage 16, the intermediate portionsof shaft 196 are inserted in the recess of the strap until the U-shapedor intermediate portion of the strap is wrapped about the intermediateportion of shaft 196 at its one end all as indicated in FIGS. 12 and 17.By reason of the carriage being connected to shaft 196 by straps 200,the carriage is floatingly held by way of opposed wheel and guidedevices 60 between opposed guide elements 54 of guide 18 of the rack andguide assembly at the cable-connected end thereof when the rack andguide assembly is hoisted by cable hoist mechanism 28 between positionsA and B and vice versa. This floating suspension of the carriage assuresthat cable-hoist mechanism 28 can further function to freely raise andlower the carriage between opposite ends of the rack and guide assemblywhen the rack and guide assembly is disposed in the B position as willbe more fully set forth below.

The cable winch mechanism 28 may be advantageously provided with acounterweight arrangement 202 as indicated in FIG. 1 to effectivelycounterbalance the overall weight of the rack and guide assembly betweenpositions A and B. The counterweight arrangement is generally comprisedof a platform 204 connected to certain cross girders 168 (only one ofwhich is shown in FIG. 1) at the junction between sections 164 and 166of structure 16. The left-hand end of the platform extends outwardly ofthe structure on the left-hand side thereof as viewed in FIG. 1. Asuitable counterweight 206 is provided with an idler pulley 207 forconventional connection to an intermediate portion of a cable 208. Oneend of cable 208 is anchored to platform 204 and the other end ispartially wrapped about an idler pulley 210 mounted on platform 204prior to being wrapped about drive pulley 182 in a counterclockwisedirection. Thus, when winch 172 drives pulley 182 in a clockwisedirection in order to progressively raise the rack and guide assemblyfrom position A to B, the counterweight would be progressively loweredand counterbalance the weight of the rack and guide assembly. On theother hand, when the power winch is actuated to drive the pulley in acounterclockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 1, the counterweight wouldbe progressively raised while the rack and guide assembly would beprogressively lowered from position B to A. The power winch mechanism172 can be provided, of course, with the usual brake device (not shown)for positively holding the rack end guide assembly in any desiredintermediate position between full positions A and B.

ln still another advantageous embodiment of the apparatus of the instantinvention, inner and outer pairs of tracks 30 and 32 are provided tofurther stabilize and generally orient the rack and guide assemblybetween positions A and B upon actuation of the power winch mechanism.As noted above, the inner and outer pairs of tracks 30 and 32 are ofdifferent curvilinear shape and overall extent. They are adapted to beengaged by the pairs of wheels 44 and 52 of rack 17. Although the pairsof tracks 30 and 32 are of different extent, etc., they are disposed inaligned and parallel spaced relation to each other for effectingadvancement of the rack and guide assembly 12 between positions A and Bin a smooth and continuous fashion as will now be described.

Each outer track 32 is made up of track sections 212 of approximatelyV-shaped configuration. In connecting the upper and lower ends of theV-shaped sections 212 of an outer track 32 to an upper cross girder 168and a floor support bracket 214, these sections 212 are arranged inparallel and spaced relation so as to define a closed somewhat V-shapedloop 216 of substantially uniform width. The V-shaped sections 212 ofone outer track are arranged in transverse alignment to the opposedV-shaped sections of the other outer and opposed track 32 when the twopairs of V-shaped sections of the pair of outer tracks 32 are connectedto upper cross girder 168 and their respective floor bracket 214 all asshown in FIGS. 1 and 5. Wheel 44 at the cable-connected end of the rackand guide assembly has a diameter that corresponds to the width of theclosed loop 216 of an outer track 32 so that the opposed wheels 44 ofthe rack and guide assembly can roll freely in their respective closedloop 216 of the outer tracks 32 in the manner shown in FIGS. 1, 3, 8 and17. As indicated in FIGS. 1-2, intermediate portions of the innerV-shaped section 212 of the outer tracks 32 are connected to variouscross and upright girders 168 of structure 16 for reinforcementpurposes.

On the other hand, as noted in FIGS. 1, 5 and 7, the inner pair oftracks 30 include rightwardly extending elongated linear sections 218disposed in parallel and transversely aligned relation to each other. Aplurality of stanchions 220 support either inner track section 218 abovefloor F.

The left-hand section 222' of a given inner track 30, as viewed in FIGS.1, 3 and 5, is comprised of a sinusoidal S- shaped portion 224 and anupwardly and outwardly inclined linear section 226 connected thereto.The left-hand end of the linear section 226 of a given inner track 30terminates in the aforementioned V-shaped portion 31. The inner pair oftracks 30 are adapted to be rollingly engaged by wheels 52 at thecable-free end of the rack and guide assembly when rack and guideassembly is moved from position A to position B, e.g., by way of thepower winch 172, etc.

It is to be understood that for reinforcement purposes various portionsof the left-hand section 222 of either inner track 30 are connected togirders (not shown) of the lower section 164 of structure 16. In orderto maintain rolling contact of as sembly wheels 52 and 44 with theirassociated tracks 30 and 32, these wheels are provided with flanges 52and 44 respectively and the inner and outer pairs of tracks 30 and 32are provided with T-shaped rails 228 and 230 for rollingly engaging theflanged wheels 52 and 44 in the manner illustrated in FIG. 8. The lowerends of the V-shaped sections 212 of an outer track 32 may be providedwith a crosspiece 232 for arrestingly engaging its associated wheel 44of the rack and guide assembly so as to horizontally dispose thecable-connected end of rack 17 at A as depicted in FIG. 5. If desired,crosspiece 232 of a given outer track 32 may be reinforced by a strut234.

As best indicated in FIG. 5, the hook and pusher device 32 in anotherembodiment of the instant invention is generally comprised of first andsecond L-shaped elements 236 and 238 of different length. The legsection 239 of element 236 is pivotally connected to a plate 240suspended from bracket assembly 242 affixed to certain girders 166. Anintermediate portion of a leg section 239 of element 236 is connected toone side of a plate 244 while the upper end of a leg section 246 ofelement 238 is connected to the right-hand edge of plate 244 on the oneside thereof so that the lower free ends of elements 236 and 238 arearranged in an outwardly divergent relation to each other.

An extensible actuator 248 extends between plates 240 and 244 and ispivotally connected thereto as illustrated in FIG. 5. A cross bar 250extends transversely between opposed bottom chordal side edge members 34of the rack and guide assembly and is located at a preselected point atthe cable-free end thereof for selective engagement by the hook andpusher device 32' during hoisting of the rack and guide assembly betweenpositions A and B by way of power winch 172, etc.

A rack arresting device 33 may be advantageously used in combinationwith pusher 32 for precisely orienting the cablefree end of rack inalignment with station pass line L. This device 33 constitutes in effecta pair of girders 252 (only one of which is shown in FIG. 5) extendingbetween and connected to certain adjacent and parallel cross girders 168at the lower end of lower section 164 of structure 14 as depicted inFIG. 5. The arresting pair of girders 252 are disposed in predeterminedfashion between these certain parallel girders 163 for abuttinglyengaging opposed wheels 52 of the rack and guide assembly at thecable-free end thereof so as to precisely align the workpieces on therack and guide assembly with their respective pass line, e.g., L ofstation S.

When actuator 248 of device 32' is actuated to the right as indicated bydotted and solid lines in FIG. 5, fork elements 236 and 238 of device32' are pivoted from a retracted lefthand position to an outwardlyextending right-hand position.

Meanwhile, rod 250 is disposed below the lower free end of second andright-hand element 238 in an outwardly extended right-hand position uponhoisting of the rack and guide assembly from positions A to B as therack and guide assembly approaches arresting device 33 in the mannershown in FIG. 5. When rod 250 of the rack and guide assembly is disposedabove the lower free end of element 238 in its outward pivotal position,during hoisting of the rack and guide assembly to the upstandingposition B, actuator 248 of device 32' is further actuated for pivotingthe fork elements 236 and 238 clockwise whereupon right-hand element 238will hookingly engage rack rod 250 and draw the rack rod toward thearresting device until opposed wheels 52 abut their respective arrestinggirders 252 thereby orienting the workpieces on the rack and guideassembly with station S.

Upon opposed wheels 52 at the cable-free end of rack 17 initiallyabutting the girders 252 of device 33 during hoisting of rack and guideassembly 12 from positions A to B, the rack and guide assembly has beenhoisted to its highest elevated position B above station S as designatedby way of dottedline 254 for opposed wheels 52 of the rack and guideassembly in FIG. 5. At this time, rotation of pulley 182 of power winch172 is momentarily stopped and reversed in order to lower the rack andguide assembly until the opposed wheels 52 of the rack and guideassembly become seated in the grooves of V- shaped track ends 31.

After the workpieces W while in upstanding position B have been fed intoand withdrawn from station S, hook and pusher device 32 and arrestingdevice 33 advantageously cooperate to start the continuous andprogressive movement of rack and guide assembly 12 from position B toposition A. To this end, pulley 182 of the power winch is rotatedclockwise to elevate the rack and guide assembly and disengage wheels 52from V- shaped ends 31 until the opposed wheels reach their highestelevation above floor F as indicated by dotted line 254 in FIG. 5. Thenactuator 248 of device 32' is reactuated to pivot fork elements 236 and238 counterclockwise from a retracted position to an extended positionall as indicated by solid and dotted lines in FIG. whereupon left-handfork element 236 will abuttingly engage rack rod 250 and push thecable-free end of the rack and guide assembly in a counterclockwisedirection about the upper opposed wheels 44 at the upper ends of outertracks 32.

At the same time fork element 236 of device 32' engages rack rod 250,the pulley 182 is momentarily stopped and reversed in a counterclockwisedirection to move the rack and guide assembly from position B toposition A. When either wheel 52 rollingly engages the upwardly andoutwardly inclined track section 226 of its respective inner track 30during retransfer of the rack and guide assembly from position B toposition A, rack rod 250 will be substantially clear of the ends of forkelement 236 and 238 of device 32'. One of the primary advantages of hookand pusher device 32' when used in conjunction with arresting device 33is that it enables precise alignment of the cable-free end of the rackand guide assembly with the pass line L of station S during hoisting ofthe rack and guide assembly between positions A and B. Without the useof pusher 32' and arrester 33, it would be difficult for the cable-freeend of rack and guide 12, because of its weight, to be aligned withstation pass line L. i

A cam operable latch device 29 can be advantageously connected to thecable-connected end of the rack and guide assembly if desired. The latchdevice is generally comprised of a pair of plates 198 as aforementioned.These plates are disposed in transverse alignment and affixed at theirbottom longitudinal side edges to an upper plate 256 of rack 17 at thecable-connected end of assembly 12. The right-hand end of a plate 198includes an inwardly extending generally U-shaped slot 258 for receivingan outer end of shaft 196. Plate 198 on the outwardly facing sidethereof is provided with outwardly directed laterally projecting ears260. An arm 262 disposed between these ears 260 is pivotally connectedto the plate at the junction between the leg sections thereof.

A cam follower wheel 264 is rotatably connected to the outer free end ofthe outwardly inclined segment of an arm 262. As viewed in FIGS. 11-12,a coil spring 266 is interposed between the left-hand reduced portion ofone of the plates 198 and the outer segment of an arm 262. Spring 266biases the other segment 268 of the arm relative to a plate 198. Theother segment 268 of an arm 262 includes an opening 270 aligned with theslot 258 of a plate 198 whereby either outer end of shaft 196 isnormally inserted in the opening 270 of its respective arm 262 when theother segment of an arm 262 is biased in overlapping engagement with theoutwardly facing side of its associated plate 198 all as indicated inFIGS. 11-12 and 17.

A cam device 29' operatively associated with latch mechanism 29 isconnected to the top of upper section 166 on the rack facing side ofstructure 16. It includes a pair of plates 272 affixed in planar alignedrelation to various girders 168. The opposed camedges 274 of plates 272are cut away in a downward and outward direction to define opposedoutwardly beveled edge portions 276.

During hoisting of the rack and guide assembly from positions A to B,cam follower wheels 264 on arms 262 initially engage the beveled platecam edges 276 and urge the overlapping segments 268 of an arm 262 to bepivoted in a direction outwardly of their plates 198. Continued hoistingof the rack and guide assembly from positions A to B results in camfollowers 264 of arms 262 engaging the inner cam edges 274 so as tocause the leg sections 268 of arms 262 to be further pivoted in oppositedirections outwardly of their respective plate 198 until the overlappingleg sections 268 of opposed arms 262 are fully disconnected from theouter ends of their associated shaft 196 as indicated in FIG. 17.

it should be noted at this time that the opposed cam edges 274 are ofsuch a length that cam follower wheels 264 will maintain rollingengagement with edges 274 when rack wheels 52 are advanced into and outof the V-shaped track ends 31 during hoisting of the rack and guideassembly to position B.

Since the outer ends of shaft 196 are disconnected from the overlappingsections 268 of the pair of arms 262 when the cam follower wheels 268 ofarms 262 are in rolling engagement with cam edges 274, the shafttogether with carriage 16 are disconnected from rack 17. This permitscarriage and shaft 196 to be progressively lowered and raised betweenthe opposing longitudinal ends of the rack and guide assembly uponfurther operation of cable hoist mechanism 28 after hoisting the rackand guide assembly to position B. During lowering and raising of thecarriage relative to the rack and guide assembly at position B, any railworkpiece W attached to the' carriage will be correspondingly loweredand raised into and out of work station S in order to effect cladding ofthe workpiece.

After cladding of the workpiece rails W and return of carriage 16 to thecable-connected end of the rack and guide assembly as shown in FIG. 12,cable hoist mechanism 28 is selectively operated to retransfer the rackand guide assembly with the metal clad or fully treated workpieces frompositions B to A. Since the rack and guide assembly is progressivelylowered during its retransfer to position A, shaft 196 is retained inthe bottom of slots 258 of plates 198 until cam follower wheels 264 ofthe pair of arms 262 are disengaged from inner cam edges 274. Thisallows pivoting of the overlapping sections 268 of the pair of arms intooverlapping engagement with the outer ends of shaft 196 so as tosecurely lock the carriage to the rack and guide assembly. Thus, thecam-operable latch mechanism 29 in conjunction with cam 29advantageously enables carriage 16, etc., to be selectively releasedfrom rack 17 of the rack and guide assembly when the assembly is in theB position.

A full operating cycle of the apparatus of the instant invention willnow be described. A plurality of six elongated rail workpieces W arefirst individually connected at their ends to their respective mountingdevices 24 upon the pivoting of a bar 160 of device 26 to an openposition and with guide and rack assembly located at position A. Afterthe rails are all properly positioned in grooves 148 of device 25, cablehoist mechanism 28 is actuated and rack and guide assembly 12 hoisted toposition B. During positioning of assembly 12 at B, opposed wheels 52 ofthe rack and guide assembly remain seated in the V-shaped track ends 31upon actuation of device 32 as aforedescribed. Although the rails aredirectly carried by device 25 when rack 17 is at position A, the railbecomes progressively partially and then fully supported by its railmount 24 on carriage 16 as rack and guide 12 is transferred frompositions A to B. y

With the rack and guide assembly at position B, the cable hoistmechanism is further actuated to progressively lower and raise thecarriage thereby correspondingly raising and lowering the workpiecerails W into and out of metal cladding station S so that both sides ofthe rails can be clad with aluminum as set forth in the prior pendingapplication, Ser. No. 881,169, filed Dec. 1, 1969. With the rails Wbeing directly carried by carriage 16 when the carriage is in the Bposition, each rail swivels about its mounting device 24. Even though arail may have variations along its length due to acceptable productiontolerances, the rail is free to swivel and pivot about its mountingdevice 24 within the limits determined by guide and holddown devices 25and 26 as aforedescribed during continuous passage of the rail into andout of station S. The aforesaid arrangement allows cladding of the railswhile avoiding binding engagement between the rail handling equipmentand cladding mold guides, etc., in station S. All of this means that thecladding operation can proceed on a production line basis withoutserious injury or disturbance of the cladding material as it is appliedand after it is applied to a rail. Upon retransfer of rack and guideassembly 12 from positions B to A, clad rails W are unloaded at positionA and assembly 12 reloaded with unclad rails W. The apparatus is nowready for another full operating cycle.

Although the apparatus has been described in connection with cladding ofat least one rail W, it could be used for handling other workpieces suchas the dip-coating of pipes, etc. Even though rack and guide assembly 12has moved in a curvilinear fashion between stations A and B or in alinear fashion into and out of station S when the assembly is positionedat B, the rack and guide assembly could move, e.g., in a linear fashionbetween A and B or a somewhat curvilinear fashion when the assembly isat B. Moreover, the carriage could be slidably connected to guide 18 invarious ways. For example, an opposed side edge of carriage 16 could beprovided with a dovetail groove for receiving a guide element 54 insteadof wheel and guide device 60.

Advantageous embodiments of the invention have been shown and described.It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes canbe made without departing from the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for handling and orienting a workpiece relative to agenerally vertical pass line of a workpiece treating station, saidapparatus comprising rack and guide means and a carriage selectivelyalignable with the pass line of the station, means on said carriage forso mounting a workpiece on the carriage whereby the carriage candirectly carry the workpiece when said rack and guide means are alignedwith the pass line of the station, means releasably connecting andsupporting said carriage on the rack portion of said rack and guidemeans, means slidably connecting the carriage to the guide portion ofsaid rack and guide means whereby said carriage can move relative to theguide portion of said rack and guide means upon the release of saidcarriage from the said rack portion when the rack and guide means arealigned with the pass line of the treating station, said meansreleasably connecting said carriage on said rack portion of said rackand guide means including latch means connected to said rack portion forreleasing said carriage from said rack portion to allow advancement ofsaid carriage together with a workpiece in a direction towards thetreatment station when said rack and guide means are aligned with theworkpiece treating station pass line, and a track means for guiding andsupporting the rack portion of said rack and guide means relative to thestation pass line.

2. An apparatus as set forth in claim 1 including means connected tosaid rack and guide means for moving said rack and guide means from ahorizontal position to an upstanding position and vice versa.

3. An apparatus as set forth in claim 2 wherein said moving meansincludes stop means for engaging the rack portion of said rack and guidemeans in order to precisely align said rack and guide means with thestation pass line.

4. An apparatus as set forth in claim 2 wherein said moving meansincludes a superstructure having said track means.

5. An apparatus as set forth in claim 1 including hoist means connectedto said carriage for elevating and aligning said carriage and said rackand guide means with the station pass line and for selectively advancingsaid carriage in a direction towards the station pass line upon therelease of said carriage from the rack portion of said rack and guidemeans when said rack and guide means are aligned with the pass line ofthe station.

6. An apparatus as set forth in claim 1 in which the carriage includeswheel and guide means for slidably connecting said carriage to the guideportion of said rack and said guide means.

7. An apparatus for handling and orienting a workpiece relative to thegenerally vertical pass line of a workpiece treating station, saidapparatus comprising a superstructure, a rack and guide means and acarriage, means for mounting said rack and guide means and said carriageon said superstructure and for supporting and aligning said rack andguide means and said carriage with the treating station pass line, meanson said carriage for so mounting a workpiece on the carriage whereby thecarriage can directly carry the workpiece when said rack and guide meansare aligned with the pass line of the station, means releasablyconnecting and supporting the carriage on the rack portion of said rackand guide means, means slidably connecting the carriage to the guideportion of the said rack and guide means whereby said carriage can moverelative to the guide portion of said rack and guide means upon therelease of said carriage from the said rack portion when the rack andguide means are aligned with the station pass line, said meansreleasably connecting the carriage on the rack portion of said rack andguide means including latch means connected to said rack portion forreleasing said carriage from said rack portion and said superstructureincluding cam means for effecting disengagement of said latch means toeffect release of said carriage from said rack portion so as to allowadvancement of said carriage together with a workpiece in a directiontowards the treatment station when said rack and guide means are alignedwith the station pass line.

8. An apparatus as set forth in claim 7 in which said mounting meansincludes stop means for engaging the rack portion of said rack and guidemeans in order to precisely align said rack and guide means with thestation pass line.

9. An apparatus as set forth in claim 7 including hoist means connectedto said carriage means for elevating and aligning said carriage and saidrack and guide means with the station pass line and for advancing saidcarriage together with a workpiece in a direction towards the stationwhen said rack and guide means are aligned with the station pass line.

10. An apparatus as set forth in claim 7 in which the rack portion ofsaid rack and guide means is comprised of workpiece positioning andguiding means for positioning a workpiece at selected times and forguiding the movements of a workpiece when the rack and guide means arealigned with the station pass line.

11. An apparatus as set forth in claim 7 in which the rack portion'ofsaid rack and guide assembly includes means for holding a workpiece onthe rack portion during alignment of said rack and guide means with thestation pass line.

12. An apparatus as set forth in claim 7 in which said carriage includeswheel and guide means for slidably connecting said carriage to the guideportion of said rack and guide means.

13. An apparatus for handling and orienting a workpiece relative to thepass line of a workpiece treating station, said apparatus comprisingrack and guide means and a carriage selectively alignable with the passline of the station, means on said carriage for so mounting a workpieceon the carriage whereby the carriage can directly carry the workpiecewhen said rack and guide means are aligned with the pass line of thestation, means releasably connecting and supporting said carriage on therack portion of said rack and guide means, means slidably connecting thecarriage to the guide portion of said rack and guide means whereby saidcarriage can move relative to the guide portion of said rack and guidemeans upon the release of said carriage from the said rack portion whenthe rack and guide means are aligned with the pass line of the treatingstation, means connected to said rack portion for releasing saidcarriage from said rack portion to allow advancement of said carriagetogether with a workpiece in a direction towards the workpiece treatingstation when said rack and guide means are aligned with the workpiecetreating station pass line, means connected to said rack and guide meansfor moving said rack and guide means from a horizontal position to anupstanding position and vice versa, said moving means including stopmeans for engaging the rack portion of said rack and guide means inorder to precisely align said rack and guide means with the station passline, and hook and pusher means for selectively engaging the rackportion of said rack and guide means and for drawing the rack and guidemeans into and out of engagement with said stop means.

14. An apparatus for handling and orienting a workpiece relative to thepass line of a workpiece treating station, said apparatus comprisingrack and guide means and a carriage selectively alignable with the passline of the station, means on said carriage for so mounting a workpieceon the carriage whereby the carriage can directly carry the workpiecewhen said rack and guide means are aligned with the pass line of thestation, means releasably connecting and supporting said carriage on therack portion of said rack and guide means, means slidably connecting thecarriage to the guide portion of said rack and guide means whereby saidcarriage can move relative to the guide portion of said rack and guidemeans upon the release of said carriage from the said rack portion whenthe rack and guide means are aligned with the pass line of the treatingstation, means connected to said rack portion for releasing saidcarriage from said rack portion to allow advancement of said carriagetogether with a workpiece in a direction towards the treatment stationwhen said rack and guide means are aligned with the workpiece treatingstation pass line, and said carriage workpiece mounting means includ ingswivel means for mounting the workpiece about the iongitudinal axis ofsaid carriage.

15. An apparatus as set forth in claim 14 in which the rack portion ofsaid rack and guide means includes means for limiting the swivelmovements of the workpiece relative to said carriage.

16. An apparatus for handling and orienting a workpiece relative to thepass line of a workpiece treating station, said apparatus comprising asuperstructure, a rack and guide means and a carriage, means formounting said rack and guide means and said carriage on saidsuperstructure and for supporting and aligning said rack and guide meansand said carriage with the treating station pass line, means on saidcarriage for so mounting a workpiece on the carriage whereby thecarriage can directly carry the workpiece when said rack and guide meansare aligned with the pass line of the station, means releasablyconnecting and supporting the carriage on the rack portion of said rackand guide means, means slidably connecting the carriage to the guideportion of the said rack and guide means whereby said carriage can moverelative to the guide portion of said rack and guide means upon therelease of said carriage from the said rack portion when the rack andguide means are aligned with the station pass line, latch meansconnected to said rack portion for releasing said carriage from saidrack portion to allow advancement of said carriage together with aworkpiece in a direction towards the treatment station when said rackand guide means are aligned with the station pass line, said mountingmeans including stop means for engaging the rack portion of said rackand guide means in order to precisely align said rack and guide meanswith the station pass line, and hook and pusher means for selectivelyengaging the rack portion of said rack and guide means and for drawingthe rack and guide means into and out of engagement with said stopmeans.

17. An apparatus for handling and orienting a workpiece relative to thepass line of a workpiece treating station, said apparatus comprising asuperstructure, a rack and guide means and a carriage, means formounting said rack and guide means and said carriage on saidsuperstructure and for supporting and aligning said rack and guide meansand said carriage with the treating station pass line, means on saidcarriage for so mounting a workpiece on the carriage whereby thecarriage can directly carry the workpiece when said rack and guide meansare aligned with the pass line of the station, means releasablyconnecting and supporting the carriage on the rack portion of said rackand guide means, means slidably connecting the carriage to the guideportion of the said rack and guide means whereby said carriage can moverelative to the guide portion of said rack and guide means upon therelease of said carriage from the said rack portion when the rack andguide means are aligned with the station pass line, latch meansconnected to said rack portion for releasing said carriage from saidrack portion to allow advancement of said carriage together with a workiece in a direction towards the treatment station when said rack andguide means are aligned with the station pass line, and saidsuperstructure including track means for supporting and aligning therack portion of said rack and guide means with the station pass line,and the rack portion of said rack and guide means having opposed pairsof wheels at opposite ends thereof for engaging said track means duringthe alignment of said rack and guide means with the station pass line.

18. An apparatus as set forth in claim 17 in which said track means areof curvilinear shape.

19. An apparatus as set forth in claim 17 wherein said track means arecomprised of two pairs of inner and outer parallel and spaced trackelements and wherein the opposed pairs of wheels are laterally offsetrelative to each other for separately engaging various track elements ofsaid inner and outer track means.

20. An apparatus as set forth in claim 17 in which said track meansincludes upwardly facing generally V-shaped notched portions forreleasably receiving one pair of wheels of said pairs of wheels whensaid rack and guide means is aligned with the station pass line.

21. An apparatus for handling and orienting a workpiece relative to thepass line of a workpiece treating station, said apparatus comprising asuperstructure, a rack and guide means and a carriage, means formounting said rack and guide means and said carriage on saidsuperstructure and for supportingand aligning said rack and guide meansand said carriage with the treating station pass line, means on saidcarriage for so mounting a workpiece on the carriage whereby thecarriage can directly carry the workpiece when said rack and guide meansare aligned with the pass line of the station, means releasablyconnecting and supporting the carriage on the rack portion of said rackand guide means, means slidably connecting the carriage to the guideportion of the said rack and guide means whereby said carriage can moverelative to the guide portion of said rack and guide means upon therelease of said carriage from the said rack portion when the rack andguide means are aligned with the station pass line, latch meansconnected to said rack portion for releasing said carriage from saidrack portion to allow advancement of said carriage together with aworkpiece in a direction towards the treatment station when said rackand guide means are aligned with the station pass line, and saidcarriage workpiece mounting means including swivel means for mounting aworkpiece about the longitudinal axis of said carriage.

22. An apparatus as set forth in claim 21 in which said swivel meansincludes means for limiting the swivel movement of a workpiece to about7.

23. An apparatus for handling and orienting a workpiece relative to thepass line of a workpiece treating station, said apparatus comprising asuperstructure, a rack and guide means and a carriage, means formounting said rack and guide means and said carriage on saidsuperstructure and for supporting and aligning said rack and guide meansand said carriage with the treating station pass line, means on saidcarriage for so mounting a workpiece on the carriage whereby thecarriage can directly carry the workpiece when said rack and guide meansare aligned with the pass line of the station, means releasablyconnecting and supporting the carriage on the rack portion of said rackand guide means, means slidably connecting the carriage to the guideportion of the said rack and guide means whereby said carriage can moverelative to the guide portion of said rack and guide means upon therelease of said carriage from the said rack portion when the rack andguide means are aligned with the station pass line, latch meansconnected to said rack portion for releasing said carriage from saidrack portion to allow advancement of said carriage together with aworkpiece in a direction towards the treatment station when said rackand guide means are aligned with the station pass line, and saidsuperstructure including cam means for engaging said latch means inorder to effect a release of said carriage from said rack portion ofsaid rack and guide means when said rack and guide means are alignedwith the station pass line.

* I k i l

1. An apparatus for handling and orienting a workpiece relative to agenerally vertical pass line of a workpiece treating station, saidapparatus comprising rack and guide means and a carriage selectivelyalignable with the pass line of the station, means on said carriage forso mounting a workpiece on the carriage whereby the carriage candirectly carry the workpiece when said rack and guide means are alignedwith the pass line of the station, means releasably connecting andsupporting said carriage on the rack portion of saId rack and guidemeans, means slidably connecting the carriage to the guide portion ofsaid rack and guide means whereby said carriage can move relative to theguide portion of said rack and guide means upon the release of saidcarriage from the said rack portion when the rack and guide means arealigned with the pass line of the treating station, said meansreleasably connecting said carriage on said rack portion of said rackand guide means including latch means connected to said rack portion forreleasing said carriage from said rack portion to allow advancement ofsaid carriage together with a workpiece in a direction towards thetreatment station when said rack and guide means are aligned with theworkpiece treating station pass line, and a track means for guiding andsupporting the rack portion of said rack and guide means relative to thestation pass line.
 2. An apparatus as set forth in claim 1 includingmeans connected to said rack and guide means for moving said rack andguide means from a horizontal position to an upstanding position andvice versa.
 3. An apparatus as set forth in claim 2 wherein said movingmeans includes stop means for engaging the rack portion of said rack andguide means in order to precisely align said rack and guide means withthe station pass line.
 4. An apparatus as set forth in claim 2 whereinsaid moving means includes a superstructure having said track means. 5.An apparatus as set forth in claim 1 including hoist means connected tosaid carriage for elevating and aligning said carriage and said rack andguide means with the station pass line and for selectively advancingsaid carriage in a direction towards the station pass line upon therelease of said carriage from the rack portion of said rack and guidemeans when said rack and guide means are aligned with the pass line ofthe station.
 6. An apparatus as set forth in claim 1 in which thecarriage includes wheel and guide means for slidably connecting saidcarriage to the guide portion of said rack and said guide means.
 7. Anapparatus for handling and orienting a workpiece relative to thegenerally vertical pass line of a workpiece treating station, saidapparatus comprising a superstructure, a rack and guide means and acarriage, means for mounting said rack and guide means and said carriageon said superstructure and for supporting and aligning said rack andguide means and said carriage with the treating station pass line, meanson said carriage for so mounting a workpiece on the carriage whereby thecarriage can directly carry the workpiece when said rack and guide meansare aligned with the pass line of the station, means releasablyconnecting and supporting the carriage on the rack portion of said rackand guide means, means slidably connecting the carriage to the guideportion of the said rack and guide means whereby said carriage can moverelative to the guide portion of said rack and guide means upon therelease of said carriage from the said rack portion when the rack andguide means are aligned with the station pass line, said meansreleasably connecting the carriage on the rack portion of said rack andguide means including latch means connected to said rack portion forreleasing said carriage from said rack portion and said superstructureincluding cam means for effecting disengagement of said latch means toeffect release of said carriage from said rack portion so as to allowadvancement of said carriage together with a workpiece in a directiontowards the treatment station when said rack and guide means are alignedwith the station pass line.
 8. An apparatus as set forth in claim 7 inwhich said mounting means includes stop means for engaging the rackportion of said rack and guide means in order to precisely align saidrack and guide means with the station pass line.
 9. An apparatus as setforth in claim 7 including hoist means connected to said carriage meansfor elevating and aligning said carriage and said rack and guide meanswith the staTion pass line and for advancing said carriage together witha workpiece in a direction towards the station when said rack and guidemeans are aligned with the station pass line.
 10. An apparatus as setforth in claim 7 in which the rack portion of said rack and guide meansis comprised of workpiece positioning and guiding means for positioninga workpiece at selected times and for guiding the movements of aworkpiece when the rack and guide means are aligned with the stationpass line.
 11. An apparatus as set forth in claim 7 in which the rackportion of said rack and guide assembly includes means for holding aworkpiece on the rack portion during alignment of said rack and guidemeans with the station pass line.
 12. An apparatus as set forth in claim7 in which said carriage includes wheel and guide means for slidablyconnecting said carriage to the guide portion of said rack and guidemeans.
 13. An apparatus for handling and orienting a workpiece relativeto the pass line of a workpiece treating station, said apparatuscomprising rack and guide means and a carriage selectively alignablewith the pass line of the station, means on said carriage for somounting a workpiece on the carriage whereby the carriage can directlycarry the workpiece when said rack and guide means are aligned with thepass line of the station, means releasably connecting and supportingsaid carriage on the rack portion of said rack and guide means, meansslidably connecting the carriage to the guide portion of said rack andguide means whereby said carriage can move relative to the guide portionof said rack and guide means upon the release of said carriage from thesaid rack portion when the rack and guide means are aligned with thepass line of the treating station, means connected to said rack portionfor releasing said carriage from said rack portion to allow advancementof said carriage together with a workpiece in a direction towards theworkpiece treating station when said rack and guide means are alignedwith the workpiece treating station pass line, means connected to saidrack and guide means for moving said rack and guide means from ahorizontal position to an upstanding position and vice versa, saidmoving means including stop means for engaging the rack portion of saidrack and guide means in order to precisely align said rack and guidemeans with the station pass line, and hook and pusher means forselectively engaging the rack portion of said rack and guide means andfor drawing the rack and guide means into and out of engagement withsaid stop means.
 14. An apparatus for handling and orienting a workpiecerelative to the pass line of a workpiece treating station, saidapparatus comprising rack and guide means and a carriage selectivelyalignable with the pass line of the station, means on said carriage forso mounting a workpiece on the carriage whereby the carriage candirectly carry the workpiece when said rack and guide means are alignedwith the pass line of the station, means releasably connecting andsupporting said carriage on the rack portion of said rack and guidemeans, means slidably connecting the carriage to the guide portion ofsaid rack and guide means whereby said carriage can move relative to theguide portion of said rack and guide means upon the release of saidcarriage from the said rack portion when the rack and guide means arealigned with the pass line of the treating station, means connected tosaid rack portion for releasing said carriage from said rack portion toallow advancement of said carriage together with a workpiece in adirection towards the treatment station when said rack and guide meansare aligned with the workpiece treating station pass line, and saidcarriage workpiece mounting means including swivel means for mountingthe workpiece about the longitudinal axis of said carriage.
 15. Anapparatus as set forth in claim 14 in which the rack portion of saidrack and guide means includes means for limiting the swivel movements ofthE workpiece relative to said carriage.
 16. An apparatus for handlingand orienting a workpiece relative to the pass line of a workpiecetreating station, said apparatus comprising a superstructure, a rack andguide means and a carriage, means for mounting said rack and guide meansand said carriage on said superstructure and for supporting and aligningsaid rack and guide means and said carriage with the treating stationpass line, means on said carriage for so mounting a workpiece on thecarriage whereby the carriage can directly carry the workpiece when saidrack and guide means are aligned with the pass line of the station,means releasably connecting and supporting the carriage on the rackportion of said rack and guide means, means slidably connecting thecarriage to the guide portion of the said rack and guide means wherebysaid carriage can move relative to the guide portion of said rack andguide means upon the release of said carriage from the said rack portionwhen the rack and guide means are aligned with the station pass line,latch means connected to said rack portion for releasing said carriagefrom said rack portion to allow advancement of said carriage togetherwith a workpiece in a direction towards the treatment station when saidrack and guide means are aligned with the station pass line, saidmounting means including stop means for engaging the rack portion ofsaid rack and guide means in order to precisely align said rack andguide means with the station pass line, and hook and pusher means forselectively engaging the rack portion of said rack and guide means andfor drawing the rack and guide means into and out of engagement withsaid stop means.
 17. An apparatus for handling and orienting a workpiecerelative to the pass line of a workpiece treating station, saidapparatus comprising a superstructure, a rack and guide means and acarriage, means for mounting said rack and guide means and said carriageon said superstructure and for supporting and aligning said rack andguide means and said carriage with the treating station pass line, meanson said carriage for so mounting a workpiece on the carriage whereby thecarriage can directly carry the workpiece when said rack and guide meansare aligned with the pass line of the station, means releasablyconnecting and supporting the carriage on the rack portion of said rackand guide means, means slidably connecting the carriage to the guideportion of the said rack and guide means whereby said carriage can moverelative to the guide portion of said rack and guide means upon therelease of said carriage from the said rack portion when the rack andguide means are aligned with the station pass line, latch meansconnected to said rack portion for releasing said carriage from saidrack portion to allow advancement of said carriage together with aworkpiece in a direction towards the treatment station when said rackand guide means are aligned with the station pass line, and saidsuperstructure including track means for supporting and aligning therack portion of said rack and guide means with the station pass line,and the rack portion of said rack and guide means having opposed pairsof wheels at opposite ends thereof for engaging said track means duringthe alignment of said rack and guide means with the station pass line.18. An apparatus as set forth in claim 17 in which said track means areof curvilinear shape.
 19. An apparatus as set forth in claim 17 whereinsaid track means are comprised of two pairs of inner and outer paralleland spaced track elements and wherein the opposed pairs of wheels arelaterally offset relative to each other for separately engaging varioustrack elements of said inner and outer track means.
 20. An apparatus asset forth in claim 17 in which said track means includes upwardly facinggenerally V-shaped notched portions for releasably receiving one pair ofwheels of said pairs of wheels when said rack and guide means is alignedwith the station pass line.
 21. An apparatus for handling and orientinga workpiece relative to the pass line of a workpiece treating station,said apparatus comprising a superstructure, a rack and guide means and acarriage, means for mounting said rack and guide means and said carriageon said superstructure and for supporting and aligning said rack andguide means and said carriage with the treating station pass line, meanson said carriage for so mounting a workpiece on the carriage whereby thecarriage can directly carry the workpiece when said rack and guide meansare aligned with the pass line of the station, means releasablyconnecting and supporting the carriage on the rack portion of said rackand guide means, means slidably connecting the carriage to the guideportion of the said rack and guide means whereby said carriage can moverelative to the guide portion of said rack and guide means upon therelease of said carriage from the said rack portion when the rack andguide means are aligned with the station pass line, latch meansconnected to said rack portion for releasing said carriage from saidrack portion to allow advancement of said carriage together with aworkpiece in a direction towards the treatment station when said rackand guide means are aligned with the station pass line, and saidcarriage workpiece mounting means including swivel means for mounting aworkpiece about the longitudinal axis of said carriage.
 22. An apparatusas set forth in claim 21 in which said swivel means includes means forlimiting the swivel movement of a workpiece to about 7*.
 23. Anapparatus for handling and orienting a workpiece relative to the passline of a workpiece treating station, said apparatus comprising asuperstructure, a rack and guide means and a carriage, means formounting said rack and guide means and said carriage on saidsuperstructure and for supporting and aligning said rack and guide meansand said carriage with the treating station pass line, means on saidcarriage for so mounting a workpiece on the carriage whereby thecarriage can directly carry the workpiece when said rack and guide meansare aligned with the pass line of the station, means releasablyconnecting and supporting the carriage on the rack portion of said rackand guide means, means slidably connecting the carriage to the guideportion of the said rack and guide means whereby said carriage can moverelative to the guide portion of said rack and guide means upon therelease of said carriage from the said rack portion when the rack andguide means are aligned with the station pass line, latch meansconnected to said rack portion for releasing said carriage from saidrack portion to allow advancement of said carriage together with aworkpiece in a direction towards the treatment station when said rackand guide means are aligned with the station pass line, and saidsuperstructure including cam means for engaging said latch means inorder to effect a release of said carriage from said rack portion ofsaid rack and guide means when said rack and guide means are alignedwith the station pass line.